Turkey's military says two of its warplanes chased an Israeli aircraft that allegedly violated the airspace of the breakaway Turkish Cypriot state, where Turkey is exploring for oil and gas.

A military statement late Wednesday said the Israeli plane violated the airspace five times Monday until the two Turkish F-16 jets forced it to leave the area over the Turkish Cypriot north of the divided island.

The statement didn't identify the type of Israeli aircraft, and there was no immediate comment from Israeli officials.